iFixit Offers Kit To Install 2nd Hard Drive in 2011 Mac Mini

Friday August 12, 2011 4:50 pm PDT by Jordan Golson

During its teardown of the 2011 Mac Mini's released last month, iFixit discovered plenty of room inside to install a second hard drive. One of our readers discovered the proper process to install a second hard drive in his Mini, but now it's even easier.

iFixit has released the Mac Mini Dual Hard Drive Kit for $69.95 that includes all the necessary components to install a second hard drive in a 2011 Mac Mini.

Top Rated Comments

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adcx64

10 months ago

Damn you get a lot in that package!

Rating: 6 Positives / 0 Negatives

Rafterman

10 months ago

I wonder if there will be heat issues having two hard drives

There aren't any heat issues in the Mac Mini server, which has two hard drives in it put in by Apple. So, I would guess"no".

Rating: 4 Positives / 0 Negatives

jonnysods

10 months ago

Man, I totally want to get a mini. But I want quad core and discrete graphics.

The kit is pretty sweet.

Rating: 1 Positives / 0 Negatives

justinfreid

10 months ago

Clever. They actually got an identical blackstick (and actual Apple part, I'm not kidding) and logic board removal thingy.

Even as a certified technician, I'd get this kit for private us if I had one of these Minis.

The logic board removal thingy, which looks like hanger wire bent into the proper shape and wrapped with blue tape, is iFixit's own take on the original.
They still want $20 for it: http://www.ifixit.com/Tools/Logic-Board-Removal-Tool-Mac-Mini-922-9588/IF145-159

Going through the teardown, I appreciated how Apple attached the logic board to the aluminum shell without screws using the slide in mechanism activated with this tool.

Rating: 1 Positives / 0 Negatives

Heilage

10 months ago

Rating: 1 Positives / 0 Negatives

FroMann

10 months ago

Little pricey, but still a better value compared to buying a bigger hard drive from Apple.

Rating: 1 Positives / 1 Negatives

justinfreid

10 months ago

There aren't any heat issues in the Mac Mini server, which has two hard drives in it put in by Apple. So, I would guess"no".

Actually, Cupertino provides a blessing of arctic refrigeration to MacMinis with Apple installed hard drives. Everyone else's devices will overheat.

SSDs, of course, and 2.5" drives in general don't generate a lot of heat. Plus, it'll be tucked snugly against the aluminum shell to dissipate heat.

Rating: 1 Positives / 1 Negatives